NetApp’s 2024 Cloud Complexity Report Reveals AI Disrupt or Die Era Unfolding Globally
Study highlights the divide between AI leaders and AI laggards illustrating value of unified data approach
“AI is only as good as the data that fuels it,” said Pravjit Tiwana, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Cloud Storage at NetApp. “Both the AI leaders and AI laggards show us that in the prevailing hybrid IT environment, the more unified and reliable your data, the more likely your AI initiatives are to be successful.”
There is a Significant Divide Between AI Leaders and AI Laggards
The report found a clear divide between AI leaders and AI laggards across several areas including:
-
Regions: 60% of AI-leading countries (
India ,Singapore ,UK ,USA ) have AI projects up and running or in pilot, in stark contrast to 36% in AI-lagging countries (Spain ,Australia /New Zealand ,Germany ,Japan ). -
Industries
: Technology leads with70% of AI projects up and running or in pilot, while Banking & Financial Services and Manufacturing follow with 55% and 50%, respectively. However, Healthcare (38%) and
Media & Entertainment (25%) are trailing. - Company size: Larger companies (with more than 250 employees) are more likely to have AI projects in motion, with 62% reporting projects up and running or in pilot, versus 36% of smaller companies (with fewer than 250 employees).
Both AI leaders and AI laggards show a difference in their approach to AI:
-
Globally, 67% of companies in AI-leading countries report having hybrid IT environments, with
India leading (70%) andJapan lagging (24%). - AI leaders are also more likely to report benefits from AI, including a 50% increase in production rates, 46% in the automation of routine activities, and a 45% improvement in customer experience.
“The rise of AI is ushering in a new disrupt or die era,” said
AI Laggards Must Swiftly Innovate to Stay Competitive
Despite the divide, there is notable progress among AI laggards in preparing their IT environments for AI, but the window to catch up is closing rapidly.
-
A significant number of companies in AI-lagging countries (42%) have optimized their IT environments for AI, including
Germany (67%) andSpain (59%) -
Companies in some AI-lagging countries already report seeing the benefits of a unified data infrastructure in place, such as:
- Easier data sharing:
Spain (45%),Australia /New Zealand (43%),Germany (44%) - Increased visibility:
Spain (54%) andGermany (46%)
- Easier data sharing:
IT Costs and Data Security Emerge as Top Challenges but Won’t Impede AI Progress
Rising IT costs and ensuring data security are two of the biggest challenges in the AI era, but they will not block AI progress. Instead, AI leaders will scale back, cut other IT operations, or reallocate costs from other parts of the business to fund AI initiatives.
- AI leaders will also increase their cloud operations (CloudOps), data security and AI investments throughout 2024, with 40% of large companies saying AI projects have already increased IT costs.
- Year over year, “increased cybersecurity risk” jumped 16% as a top concern from 45% to 61%, while all other concerns decreased.
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To manage AI project costs, 31% of companies globally are reallocating funds from other business areas, with
India (48%),UK (40%), and US (35%) leading this trend.
Security, AI, and
As global companies, whether AI leaders or AI laggards, increase investments, they are relying on the cloud to support their goals.
- Companies reported that they expect to increase AI-driven cloud deployments by 19% from 2024 to 2030.
- 85% of AI leaders plan to enhance their CloudOps automation over the next year.
- Increasing data security investments is a global priority, jumping 25% from 33% in 2023 to 58% in 2024.
Methodology
In
To learn more and access the full report and infographic, visit https://www.netapp.com/netapp-intelligence/cloud-complexity-report/.
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Additional Resources
2024 Cloud Complexity Report: The AI Divide
Cloud Complexity Report Infographic
About NetApp
NetApp is the intelligent data infrastructure company, combining unified data storage, integrated data services, and CloudOps solutions to turn a world of disruption into an opportunity for every customer. NetApp creates silo-free infrastructure, harnessing observability, and AI to enable the industry’s best data management. As the only enterprise-grade storage service natively embedded in the world’s biggest clouds, our data storage delivers seamless flexibility. In addition, our data services create a data advantage through superior cyber resilience, governance, and application agility. Our CloudOps solutions provide continuous optimization of performance and efficiency through observability and AI. No matter the data type, workload, or environment, with NetApp you can transform your data infrastructure to realize your business possibilities. Learn more at www.netapp.com or follow us on X, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
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Source: NetApp